ANIMAL PLANET’S FINDING BIGFOOT RETURNS TO THE WOODS TO INVESTIGATE SASQUATCH’S ORIGIN IN HALLOWEEN SPECIAL

Bigfoot Field Research Organization Team to Tackle the Big Apple

(Silver Spring, Maryland, September 28, 2011) – This fall, the Bigfoot Field Research Organization (BFRO) team from Animal Planet’s FINDING BIGFOOT trudges deep into California’s Redwood forest to investigate one of the most infamous and disputed pieces of Bigfoot evidence ever – the Patterson-Gimlin footage. Premiering Sunday, October 30, at 9 PM (ET/PT), the two-hour special FINDING BIGFOOT: BIRTH OF A LEGEND takes viewers to the site where the notorious footage was captured to investigate the elusive beast’s existence and settle the more than 50-year-old debate originated by the tape.

Outfitted with the latest technology, including night-vision and infrared cameras, the BFRO team also scours the Redwoods to uncover additional evidence of the presence of Sasquatch. With more Bigfoot signals discovered in the Redwoods than anywhere else in North America, each broken branch or peculiar noise could mean a Squatch is lurking nearby.

Prior to the debut of the special, the BFRO team will make an appearance at this year’s New York Comic Con convention. On Friday, October 14, at 6:30 PM, the entire cast — Bobo, Cliff, Matt and Ranae – will debunk Bigfoot myths with a special sneak preview of the BIRTH OF A LEGEND special. Following the sneak peek, the team will discuss its Squatchin’ experiences from the show and share years of Bigfoot knowledge and research on a panel.

In FINDING BIGFOOT, a four-person team from the BFRO — a leading scientific research organization exploring the Bigfoot/Sasquatch mystery — investigates Sasquatch sightings by interviewing locals, examining evidence and infiltrating the woodlands and forests in places where Bigfoot has been reported.

FINDING BIGFOOT is produced for Animal Planet by Ping Pong Productions. Keith Hoffman is the executive producer for Animal Planet. Brad Kuhlman and Casey Brumels are the executive producers for Ping Pong Productions.

Apparently the title of the episode has changed.

In Animal Planet’s original press release announcing the Halloween special, it was entitled “The Squatchiest Place on Earth.”

The new episode title, “Birth of a Legend” does sound like it takes the subject a tad bit more serious…

ANIMAL PLANET CONTINUES ITS SEARCH FOR THE SASQUATCH IN THE SECOND SEASON OF FINDING BIGFOOT

Network Announces Early 2012 Return of Hit Series, Halloween’s a Real Treat This October with a Two-hour Special Episode

(Silver Spring, MD) – This summer, Animal Planet left a giant footprint possibly the size of a Sasquatch itself when it revealed its six-part series FINDING BIGFOOT, which just completed its first season. Ranking among the network’s top three series, delivering 1.2M P2+ viewers, FINDING BIGFOOT found a sizeable audience among viewers, whether they believe in or question the existence of the elusive creature.

Today, Animal Planet announces the return of FINDING BIGFOOT, with an order of 10 episodes where the search for the Sasquatch continues into the next chapter. With a second season scheduled for early 2012, the network is committed to looking for the Bigfoot until it’s found and has plans to explore reported sightings throughout the United States, including Utah, New Mexico, Indiana, Pennsylvania and upstate New York.

Viewers who can’t wait until the start of season two won’t be kept in total suspense. Just in time for Halloween, Animal Planet plants its viewers deep within the dark forests of Northern California with a two-hour FINDING BIGFOOT special, “The Squatchiest Place on Earth.” Bigfoot Field Research Organization (BFRO) investigators hone in on the most infamous and disputed piece of Bigfoot evidence ever – the Patterson-Gimlin footage. Captured more than 50 years ago, the footage has been the center of the Bigfoot debate and has driven conspiracy theorists and Sasquatch enthusiasts on a quest to prove the creature’s existence. Now, the BFRO researchers take Animal Planet cameras to the site where the footage was captured and scout out new sites where the best and most convincing Bigfoot footprints have been reported.

About Craig WoolheaterCo-founder of Cryptomundo in 2005.
I have appeared in or contributed to the following TV programs, documentaries and films:
OLN's Mysterious Encounters: "Caddo Critter", Southern Fried Bigfoot, Travel Channel's Weird Travels: "Bigfoot", History Channel's MonsterQuest: "Swamp Stalker", The Wild Man of the Navidad, Destination America's Monsters and Mysteries in America: Texas Terror - Lake Worth Monster, Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot: Return to Boggy Creek and Beast of the Bayou.

I just watched the episode and found it distinctly underwhelming. Just like last season, a central problem is that the viewer is permitted to see and hear none of what the cast sees and hears–not the eyeshine, and none of the vocals. So we are left to take the cast’s word for everything, which makes for a pale experience. The apparent “thrown rock” sounds good, but knowing what we know now (that Animal Planet is happy to “enhance” or “simulate” “evidence”), we have no way of knowing whether this was the actual recording or not. If it was, one would think the show would have emphasized as much and allowed us to hear a replay in full audio, not a replay from Cliff’s recorder while it’s held in his hand. This treatment points strongly to yet another case of “simulation.”

The same shoddy approach to “evidence-gathering” is shown in the Marble Mountain sequence, when Bobo walks that ridge while being filmed by Cliff, and then the two clips (Bobo and the originally videotaped figure) are shown side by side. Matt opines that the original figure looks taller than Bobo, and yet it is also made clear that Bobo is not walking along the same ridge at all, and we are not told how far Bobo was from the camera as compared to the distance of the original figure. Therefore, the estimate that Bobo looks smaller than the original figure is absurdly groundless.

First time commenting here, I had to register with WP just so I could say the following: This show is terrible! I’m in the 60/40 club when it comes to Bigfoot. I really would like to believe in the existence, and thing there is a strong possibility. But when I see shows like this, I have to shake my head in disbelief! Using the Jacob Photos? Seriously?

I just watched this episode and also felt compelled to comment. I have to say that I’m am very disappointed that there has been no improvements in the show what-so-ever. It seems to be more of the same; that is: less-than-impressive investigating skills, dubious methods and a willingness by most of the team to accept almost anything as evidence of a ‘Squatch’. Case-in-point: The Marble Mountain video. I heard Matt say:”We had Bobo go to a similar-looking ridge” I nearly screamed at me TV! Why not go to the VERY ridge itself, and why not under the same lighting conditions so that the recreation would be accurate. As it stands, it certainly looked like a guy with a backpack on to me with nothing in the video to suggest otherwise.

I also thought it was kind of silly to have all of the noisy “party sounds” as a way to entice BF out of hiding. It seems fairly clear that if these creatures really do exist, they have taken great care to remain as elusive as possible, probably sensing that man is the most dangerous creature out there. If you’re making lots of noise, I would think that any animal would be more likely to stay away.

Another problem I have with the show has to do with the editing. I grew very tired of seeing the same segment of the show repeated again and again with the countless recaps. They would show a certain segment then go to a commercial and then show the same thing again. VERY annoying!

And lastly, as others have noted, these folks believe anything and everything to be a “squatch”. Any noise or sound, any heat signature, any bump, whistle, thump or natural sound. I live in Georgia, have for nearly all of my life and I can hear strange noises in the woods behind my house on any given night of the week. There are dogs, birds, raccoons, possum and even a few horses on the land directly behind my house and the night is full of strange sounds; many of which are difficult to identify.

As for the pros, I like the team for most part, and it’s the only thing going BF related at the moment, but I certainly hope that they can get something a little more substantial in way of evidence in the future.

I really, really want to like this show. I like their ideas, but so much is cut out and Moneymaker is so annoying. He has no proof, but he KNOWS this that and the other. He is always saying oh it;s a proven fact that squatches blah blah blah. Really? How about telling the viewer a bit about that, I find it very hard to just take his word for it.

Bobo and Cliff are great. They aren’t over the top and they come across very sincere. Renea… I like that she is the voice of reason. I like they even have a skeptic. I think that says alot. How she doesn’t tell Moneymaker to kiss her ass I’ll never know.

And those pop ups on last nights show??? One of Moneymakers said maybe Renea was just crazy. Rude.

I watched some of the pre-show marathon of “Finding Bigfoot – Revisited” (or something like that – can’t remember the name) and they actually did a good job of putting pop ups on the show that gave more depth and after-the-shoot information such as identification of the thermal images (one squatch turned out to be a horse, another a deer…), etc.

Yeah, if they met up with Ben-the real kid from the Marble Mt. video, how come he couldn’t take them to the ACTUAL location where a true comparison tape could have been shot.
As far as the controversy being started 50 years ago or whatever,
I think they were mixing the Jerry Crews track finds and the PG footage up into one package maybe? 1958-1967…

ive said it before and i’ll say it again ……
this show is an embarrassment to anyone that even remotely believes saquatch is real !!!!
every noisy is squatchy … really ????
every stack of branches had to be made by a saquatch …… it couldn’t possibly be made by someone watching survival shows and wondering if they could build a shelter .
i wonder how many “rocks being thrown” are really just a old branch falling from a tree . they are surrounded by thousands and thousands of trees ……
their quickness to instantly make bigfoot responsible anything and almost everything is offensive to anyone wanting just a little objectivity .

im surer there’s folks that go to their meetings to find out what areas interest them and go there to make noise and such so they can sit at home and watch their tom foolery on TV .

the lady is the only redeeming quality about the show . id be willing to bet moneymaker doesn’t like having her around to offer a rational and objective opinion on what they see and hear . but matt is living up to his name milking everything for maximum money making potential .
pro wrestling is more real than this show …. and i love me some pro wrestling 🙂
sadly i also watch this show which will ultimately help keep it around for me to complain about …….
damned if i do and damned if i dont ………

It’s been said a hundred times, but I’m gonna say it again: this show is complete fail, and the Animal Planet editing is only half to blame. Suffering through this slipshod mess can only be made bearable by having an empty revolver at the viewer’s side, and every time the embarrassingly self-conscious term “squatch” was utilized, another bullet was loaded, the cylinder is spun, and the trigger is pulled. Only difference; instead of aiming at the head, aim for the television. There is far more that this show gets wrong than it gets right. Did we really need a second season to prove that this particular Bigfoot hunting outfit is full of shiitake mushrooms? Apparently, yes.

T.V. is like governance… you get what your people deserve. If this programme is dumbed down and highly moronic it’s because the U.S. spectatorship is both of those things, and hence the massive success.

There are t.v. programmes I can cite which are normal when filmed for a European viewer, but then the U.S. version has a load of nonsense added- stuff that never happened, added sounds and visual effects (all of which are incredibly conspicuous, at least, to a non-American viewer, anyway). It’s fakery, but if most yanks buy it, then those of you whom it annoys will either have to make such a fuss over it that it convinces producers to treat you all like intelligent adults, or just sit back and accept that your t.v. is stultifying.

‘Finding Bigfoot’ is infuriatingly idiotic, but you get what the majority want, or in the cases of the people complaining here, accept.

Once again, this show makes a point of making every sound a SQUATCH. And Matt Moneymaker is a joke. One part of the show is that why did they not go closer to the heat source when they were in the helicopter. For all the state of the art equipment they had, they sure did not use it well. Just pointing a FLIR into a huge thicket of trees is not going to find anything, walk towards the sounds, get into the trees and see what is there. I used to be a member of the BFRO site, but got kicked off for saying that all of these blob squatches were nothing but imagination, and I proved that by posting a picture of a bush in front of my house zoomed in and saying look what I saw and there were all these people saying they saw something in my picture when there was nothing there. I had people tracing outlines of a Bigfoot when all it was was shadows. I have experienced bigfoot and my experiences are something i never will forget, but there also has to be some deductive reasoning to what most people see and experience.

I have seen Moose stand on their hind legs to eat leaves off of trees, if you were not experienced in the woods and saw that you would think it was something else. It’s like the hunter in Kentucky who shot an ELK during deer season, thinking it was the biggest deer he ever shot, it was an ELK, but since they were extinct in that state for years and were recently transplanted a few months before, most people never knew what an elk looked like.

It’s the same as bigfoot. Matt Moneymaker makes it seem like he knows how bigfoot act in all situations, they do not. In my experiences with bigfoot, Matt would tell me, it was not a bigfoot, they would not do that. Well, Matt. you do not know anything about how they act, yes there are some characteristic traits that are common and that is because of the environment, but they are also taught by their parents of what to do and how to act. Every animal, human and not are taught in the ways that helped there parents survive.

This show is nothing but Fluff.. Bobo comes off like a dope smoking 13 year old.. I find his statements lack any credibility.. “dude.. there squatches all down there.. I’ve seen them”.. I look at him more of a Bigfoot groupie than a researcher..as he’s spits out more untruths than fact.

I look forward to the day of undisputed proof of big Foot/Sasquatch. but you can’t just go around saying it’s here without getting physical proof..

and I would like to see this show do it.. but until then…. it’s all fluff..

It’s funny how miss skeptic was so sure there was a rock throwing incident. Replace her with a true skeptic. I rarely believe any of her B.S skeptic remarks. Most are unfounded. I don’t feel she adds anything to the show worthwhile.

I tried to watch this last night and I could not believe how unorganized this show is. This show tries to do much to quick and instead of actually focusing on an investigation.

When Renae asked Moneymaker to let her finish and he rolled his eyes I wanted to slap the guy. The others like Bobo are fine but everything is a Squatch to them, you would think that there were more Squatch in the woods then freaking deer. For people who spend a lot of time in the woods they sure jump to conclusions fast.

I also believe most of Moneymaker’s early bigfoot encounters or discoveries like his first prints in Ojai, CA. I grew up in that area and recently have returned and Bigfoot encounters there go back to the 30’s but I think the dude has let the idea of being a Bigfoot hot shot go to his head and forgot why he set out in search of the creature.

Great episode. Enjoyed it very much. Going to Bluff Creek with Bob Gimlin and seeing the original site was awesome. Capturing the rock throw and angry yell was a major achievement. Anyone who has tried to get Bigfoot audio on a video camera knows how ridiculously difficult that can be. I really appreciate the effort Matt and the crew are making to record evidence of these creatures.

Is it just me, or does “Bobo” look an awful lot like Larry’s brother Daryl from the second Newhart series? Between him and the lady wearing Carson’s old Floyd Turbo cap, it seems like the Discovery network is going out of its way to paint bigfooters as loons.

i stopped watching after the first season. after all the blunders and bogus bigfoot sightings or evidence and on top of that special editing from the animal planet department, i had enough. if people just stopped watching this appalling show, it’ll eventually be canceled.

Seriously, people are still watching this waste of air and airtime? I can’t believe it got a second season. I still have a television because I resisted the urge to throw a brick at the screen and quit watching last season. Folks, save yourselves a lot of time and frustration and just go outside and bang your head against the garage door. It will be just as productive and actually feel better than punishing yourself with this abysmal show. This is the kind of programming that rots brain cells.

For those of us who seek a science-based and professional sources on Bigfoot, this show is anything but and has to frustrating the efforts of scientists like Meldrum and Coleman.

Where is the professionalism around this show — starting with the initial perceptions???

“Squatch”???

Presenting oneself as “Bobo”, violates everything we know about creating good first impressions in a field where traditional science already views the Bigfoot subject matter with disdain. Surely this gentleman has a given name???

“Ranae” is likely quite pretty under the LL Bean clothing line. But again, how about burning the ear-flap wool caps and showing a little femininity?

“Moneymaker” projects a persona of being a “Money-Maker”; his lack of humility wears on every opinion based upon his expert knowledge, which comes from where??

What a contrast to any special that includes a Meldrum or Coleman interview. Both are cautious in discussing theory vs fact, both are humble presenters who are quick to point out what is and is not evidence, where their theories evolve, and what is still unknown.

I “think” this show could be re-organized to provide the balance between amateur study of Bigfoot science with the acknowledgement surrounding “amateur study”. But start with the basics of initial first impressions and projecting professionalism.

I for one would like to see Finding BF try something different for them and their usual approach and that would be in honor of Roger Patterson and his apparently lone successful filming of a BF replicate their method using horses and meandering aroun for days or even weeks when a fresh or hot sighting is reported and perhap hiring or adding a professional tracker to the crew.